Description

Title reads: "Record Xmas".

Elevated shot Regent Street at night. Travelling shot along Oxford Street at night. Travelling shot Christmas trees lit up on the front of Selfridges. Various night shots of shoppers on Oxford St. C/U of baby in man's arms. C/U of model elephants in a shop window blowing bubbles. Crowds on pavement. Various shot traffic jam on Regent St.

L/S of Piccadilly Circus with only a few cars going round. L/S of an empty Regent Street. GV. A square in London practically empty of parked cars. Panning shot boy on a scooter pulls up outside a tobacconist, his girlfriend rides pillion, she jumps off and runs into shop. C/U of boy's hand revving his bike. Girl gets back on bike, boys drives off, girl falls off back.

C/U of "No Waiting" traffic sign. Masses of parked cars. C/U of waiting restriction notice. Traffic congested Oxford Street. Jokey sequence showing man coming out of department store carrying lots of parcels. His wife waits outside in car, a policeman moves her on - it's a no stopping zone. Man drops parcels on ground, he looks angry at policeman. C/U policeman directing pedestrians with a megaphone pan to people walking across the road.

Various C/Us of children and a Poodle looking at Christmas window displays in department store. Inside a toy store, decorated to look like snowy grotto. C/U of small boy and girl bickering over toy on shop display. C/U of Father Christmas carrying a small girl, they look at a toy display. Various shots of man carrying Christmas tree along busy street, he tries to get on bus.

Various shots of large queue of kids lining up for Christmas show at Manchester ABC cinema. C/U sign: "A Happy Christmas 1959". Various shots of crowd of children being given sweets and flags.

People disembarking from an aircraft at Hanover Airport, Germany. C/U of The Burgomaster of Hanover shaking hands with Mrs Eileen Thorp, the chairman of the International Committee of the South Wales Inner Wheel. She is presented with bouquets by three Latvian refugee children. Various shot of Schulenberg Refugee Camp; washing lines strung between dilapidated huts. Various shots of families being given gifts from South Wales charity. Various shots of children playing with toys.

L/S ship "Caernarvon Castle" in dock. Various shots men loading food and turkeys which is in dock. Various shots of men walking up the gangway carrying turkeys, holly, mistletoe and a Christmas tree. Various shots ship's chef preparing the turkey. Various shots of stewards putting Christmas decorations up around ship. Various shots of chefs at work on galley of the liner "Queen Mary". We see the chefs preparing sea food, crabs and lobsters, poultry and Christmas cakes. Aerial shot of liner "Rhodesia Castle" on route from London to Cherbourg.

L/S of aeroplane, the "Comet IV" flying over. Aerial shot the Andes mountains. Aerial shot the "Queen Mary" en route. Air hostesses and stewards of the "Comet IV" laying on the beach at Recife in Brazil. C/U two members of the crew clinking glasses C/U of fake Christmas tree the crew have placed on the beach. L/S of Father Christmas and man dressed in white dinner jacket and trunks - they run up the beach holding an Xmas pudding. C/U two members of the crew laughing. L/S the crew splashing about in the water.

10 telling images selected from British Pathé's extensive WWI footage. 'The war to end all wars' was a war without parallel: over 70 million military personnel were involved and over 17 million people died.